Ivory Coast extends electoral registration period ahead of 2025 presidential polls

Independent Electoral Commission (CEI) of Ivory Coast announced on Monday that the electoral registration period for the 2025 presidential election will be extended by one week.

The decision, disclosed via a public statement, follows calls from political parties and civil society organizations for more time to complete the process.

The voter registration drive, initially launched on October 19, was scheduled to conclude on November 10. The extension applies to both Ivorian citizens residing within the country and those living abroad.

The revision process aims to update personal voter data, register new voters, and remove names of deceased individuals, those no longer eligible to vote, and those subject to judicial removal from the electoral roll.

The CEI estimates that the revised list will see an addition of approximately 4.5 million new voters, bringing the total electorate in Ivory Coast to over 10 million by the end of the registration period.

Despite the additional week, low turnout has characterized the initial phase of registration, with around 500,000 applicants recorded so far, including 300,000 first-time voters, according to the CEI.

In 2022, a similar update to the electoral list saw 531,714 new voters added, raising the total number of registered voters to 8,016,796 from 7,485,082 in 2020. The CEI remains hopeful that the extension will encourage more citizens to register ahead of the 2025 elections, which are expected to shape the political future of the West African nation.